New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 14) directed the Uttar Pradesh government to bear the schooling expenses of a Muslim child from Muzaffarnagar who was slapped by his classmates on directions of their teacher.
While hearing a plea filed by Tushar Gandhi, the great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, a bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said that while the state can also convince the school to cover the expenses, the primary responsibility of bearing such expenditure would be with the government.
“It is the obligation of the State government to pay for tuition fees, cost of uniform books, etc. and transport charges of the child till he completes his school education,” said the court, reported Bar and Bench.
Gandhi’s petition sought action against Tripta Tyagi, the school teacher, for allegedly goading students to slap the Muslim student.
A video of the incident that had gone viral on social media showed showing the child crying while Tyagi encourages other students to hit him harder. The incident had led to countrywide outrage.
In October 2023, the Uttar Pradesh government had told the Supreme Court that Tyagi would face criminal charges under Section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts that are intended to outrage religious feelings) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
She later surrendered before a court and was subsequently granted bail.
‘Primary responsibility of meeting this expenditure is of the State’
The court had also suggested last year that the state government finds a sponsor to fund the schooling expenses of the child.
However, senior Advocate Shadan Farasat, representing Tushar Gandhi, submitted that the State had failed to ensure that the tuition fee and expenses for the child’s school uniform were covered.
While the state government told the court that the Syed Murtaza Memorial Trust had offered to pay for the student, the court once again reiterated that the primary responsibility was with the state.
This story was originally published in thewire.in. Read the full story here.
